Three jailed over match-fixing involvment

Three men have been jailed for their involvement in a plot to fix a football match in England.

Businessmen Chann Sankaran and Krishna Ganeshan were convicted of conspiracy to commit bribery at Birmingham Crown Court on Wednesday, and on Friday were sentenced to five years' imprisonment.

Former Whitehawk FC defender Michael Boateng - also found guilty earlier this week - was handed 16 months behind bars for his role, while Hakeem Adelakun was cleared of the same charge and fellow footballer Moses Swaibu awaits a re-trial.

The five men became the subject of a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation following an undercover report by a national newspaper, and surveillance provided enough evidence to secure their conviction, despite the failure of their plot to fix a match between AFC Wimbledon and Dagenham and Redbridge on Novemeber 26.

Speaking on Wednesday, NCA branch commander Richard Warner said: "This is not sport as a football-loving nation recognises it. It is corruption and bribery linked to serious organised crime, and the NCA is determined to stop criminals benefiting from it.

"The evidence in corruption cases is often either verbal or visual. Unless you are there when money changes hands, or plans are made, that evidence is gone. We had a vital opportunity here to intervene early, secure the evidence to get convictions, and put a stop to Sankaran's and Ganeshan's much wider and more sinister ambitions."